All posts tagged smoothie

That’s one more holier-than-thou eco-brand selling out to The Man: Coca Cola has boosted its stake in the UK’s Innocent Drinks, which makes bottled fruit smoothies and tries to change the world in the process. It took a majority share of the company in 2010, although its founders retained operational control up until now.

Coke’s stake after the latest investment is above 90%, and the founders will step back from day-to-day management and join the company’s executive committee.

Innocent likes to let its customers know it donates 10% of profits to charity, uses only sustainably farmed ingredients, and so on. Its packaging also invites customers to drop in to its offices for a “chat” if they want to know more, including the company’s office address and a phone number.

The company joins a noble list of small businesses that built their brands as alternatives to the big, sterile corporate behemoths they were competing with, only to end up as units of those behemoths once the numbers made sense for an acquisition. Ben & Jerry’s has long been a unit of food giant Unilever, and the Body Shop is part of L'Oreal.

Has selling out to Coca Cola been worth it? Absolutely, said Innocent’s co-founder Richard Reed in a statement announcing the latest deal. “They have been hugely supportive of our mission of getting natural, healthy foods to more people and have been 100% committed to protecting our brand and the values it stands for.”